


Heroes Have Layers!

by ShowYourHumanity



Category: Shrek (Movies), 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Crossover, M/M, shrek is life, shrek is love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:33:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25028557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShowYourHumanity/pseuds/ShowYourHumanity
Summary: A Shrek/My Hero Academia crossover:Bakugo’s living the good life. A swamp to call his own. A dragon to call his friend. Alas, his hermit lifestyle is interrupted by the bloodthirsty Lord Toga. Now, the only way to get his swamp back is to rescue Prince Midoriya with the help of his new friend Kirishima. A tale of true love, happily ever afters, and onions.
Relationships: Bakugou Katsuki/Kirishima Eijirou
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	1. My Swamp

Bakugou lives and breathes for his swamp. Far, far away from the hellhole of Duloc, he hunts for his own food. He bathes in a river kept all to himself. He blasts his way through the swamp for hours without anyone bitching that he’s too loud, or too violent, or too much. Tonight, he just looks through the window of his hut, keeping watch for any mobs. For now, he only sees fireflies - hundreds, if not thousands of lights gliding through the dark. He listens to the hum of crickets, keeping an ear out for any human footsteps. He breathes in the cool swamp air, checking for the smell of lit torches.

He loves the hermit life so much that he’d painted signs to keep everyone out. Signs that read BEWARE MONSTER EXPLOSION MURDER! He’d originally painted LORD EXPLOSION MURDER. That is, until the bloodthirsty Lord Toga sent a squire, who ordered him to remove the word LORD from all signage. When he repainted the signs to KING EXPLOSION MURDER, she sent three knights, threatening eviction if he kept using titles that he hadn’t “earned”. And so Bakugou went with the name that everyone else calls him - MONSTER. If he couldn’t escape it, why not embrace it?

Bakugou accepts that he’s a monster. But he can’t accept anyone messing with his swamp. And that’s why he can’t stand Toga. She claims that she owns the swamp from a damn deed, threatening to evict him any time he defies her rule. But what does she know? She doesn’t take care of the swamp. Bakugou burns the weeds. He cleans the kingdom’s trash out of the river banks. He helps the injured dragons that seek his help after Toga’s good-for-nothing knights hunt them for sport.

Most importantly, he’s the one putting mobs in their place any time they trespass in his swamp. Some mobs are just punks who want a good scare, their torches meant to light their way. Some mobs are zealots who want to cleanse the so-called “monsters” from this world - the twenty percent of Duloc’s population cursed with a quirk. For these mobs, their torches are meant to burn his home to the ground.

As soon as Bakugou sniffs out the next mob’s torches, he walks away from the window. He tiptoes into the kitchen, trying to keep his boots from making too much noise. He grabs the cloak hanging from the kitchen chair. Although the red cloth has thinned over the years, the collar’s lined with white fur that keeps him warm at night. Although the cloak is heavy on his shoulders, the dragon teeth around his neck feel even heavier. As long as he wears the dragon tooth necklace, he carries the memory of a different time. A different man. Nonetheless, the teeth scare off most mobs. Anyone who kills not just one dragon, but three is a monster to be reckoned with.

Bakugou looks over his shoulder and says, “Yo, Red. Are you still up?”

When no smoke rises from the other side of the couch, Bakugou walks over. He finds the young dragon stretched out, taking up the whole damn couch. She’s certainly made herself comfortable ever since Bakugou took her in. Back in the springtime, he’d followed the trail of timbered trees until finding the mother. By the time Bakugou reached the enormous red dragon, she was already dead, pierced by arrows on all sides. He almost didn’t notice the hatchling chirping under her battered wing. Not a scratch on the kid. The mother dragon must’ve protected her young the whole way down. Before the knights could find their kill, Bakugou brought the baby dragon home.

Now that spring’s turned to summer, she still hasn’t left. She can’t fly. Or breathe fire. Or roar so loud that the ground trembles. In fact, she barely makes a peep, other than the birdlike chirps at night. Bakugou wonders if she’s calling for her mother. As he runs his hand over her cold scaly head, he wonders why she exhales little puffs of smoke. Does it mean she’s happy? Bakugou hopes so. He doesn’t speak dragon.

Even so, he knows that she can understand human language. “I’m going out for a walk. I’ll be back soon, alright?”

Red pushes her head against his palm, sending one last puff of smoke before plopping back on the couch.

As soon as she’s sleeping again, Bakugou heads out the door and into the swamp. He doesn’t dare use his explosions, lest he give his location away. Instead, he tracks down the mob by the smell of torches. Soon enough, he spots their torches in the dark. Only three idiots this time. Before they can get anywhere near Red, he sneaks up behind the trio and growls, “Out of my way, _extras_.”

The mob whips around, the horror on their faces captured perfectly in the firelight.

Except for one girl. Her green eyes don’t go wide. Instead, her eyes crinkle with her smile. She steps forward and waves hello. Bakugou’s never once seen any mob members wave hello - or smile at him, for that matter. Even so, he can feel the heat of her torch. He remembers the torch scorching his skin, a burn that took weeks, if not months to heal. And so Bakugou doesn’t wave back. He just glares, waiting for her to speak first.

“Good evening, sir,” the girl says. “My name’s Kendo. We’re from Class B, and…”

“Class B?” Bakugou interrupts. “What does that mean? Class Bitchass?”

“Hahaha!” says a blonde haired boy hiding behind Kendo. “This guy’s the real deal! All bark, no bite!”

Sparks crackle in Bakugou’s palms. “You wanna fight, blondie?”

The blondie grins. “The name’s Monoma, pretty boy.”

Bakugou steps forward, ready to unleash a Howitzer Impact straight into his smug grin. Before he can, some dude with purple hair asks, “What’s your name?”

Bakugou smirks, sparks flying from his palms as he bellows, “Monster Explosion Mur-!”

And then, something strange happens. The sparks die out. His legs go stiff. He can’t move. Why can’t he move?

“I’m Shinso,” purple hair says. “And that’s my quirk. The more you fight it, the worse it’s gonna get. So I suggest you listen carefully. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can all go home.”

Bakugou growls deep in his throat, but he doesn’t try to move. He just lets the sweat drip down his arms and into his palms.

“As you can see,” Shinso says, “we’re all monsters here. We’re not here to fight you.”

“Speak for yourself!” Monoma says.

Kendo knocks Monoma out cold. She grabs Monoma’s shirt and drags him back, as if she’s dragging a sack of potatoes rather than a human being.

“Anyway,” Shinso says, his tone impassive, as if nothing unusual had occurred. “Did your folks name you Monster Explosion Murder? Or do you have a _real_ name?”

Bakugou just glares.

“Frankly, I don’t care who you really are,” Shinso says. “You’re an ass. That’s all I need to know about you. Egomaniac or not, I’ve heard rumors that a former dragonslayer is nursing injured dragons. It makes me wonder if you really do have a heart.”

“Fuck…off…” Bakugou says through gritted teeth.

Shinso just shrugs, as if he’s stumped by Bakugou’s demand. “Since you squat in the middle of nowhere, you must be ignorant to rumors like those. But even you have the right to know the rumors that turn out to be true…”

“Should we really tell him?” Kendo asks. “He might turn us in.”

“He’s a bitch, but he’s not Toga’s bitch,” Shinso replies. He turns back to Bakugou and says, “Our dear Lord Toga is capturing the quirked like me and you. She’s offering rewards to anyone who catches their prey alive. Refugees are fleeing Duloc as we speak. It’s only a matter of time before they reach her swamp.”

“ _My_ …swamp…” Bakugou growls.

Shinso steps forward, looking Bakugou dead in the eye as he says, “I don’t care if it’s your swamp or Toga’s. I only ask that you extend the same hospitality to humans as you do to vermin. If you can manage that much human decency, we won’t have a problem. Understood?”

“Not…human…” Bakugou says. “We’re…monsters…”

Shinso smiles, but it comes out crooked. “You really believe that, don’t you?”

_Chirp!_

“Is that…” Kendo whips around, dragging Monoma through the dirt. “Is that a _dragon?_ ”

Bakugou releases the explosions in his palms, sending the class tumbling back. Free from his paralysis, he flies over the trio and hits the ground running. When he finds Red only a few paces from the group, he stops in his tracks. Smoke billowing from her flared nostrils. Sparks flying from her open jaw - the first fire he’d ever seen from the dragon. He couldn’t be more proud, but he can’t show it to the enemy. He can only show anger. It’s all they expect of him anyway. And so he scoops up the dragon, hoisting her onto his shoulders. Red curls around his neck, hissing at the trespassers as sparks keep flying out. Bakugou lets the explosions crackle in his hands. He holds out one palm, ready to fire the moment they take a step closer.

“So the rumors about the dragons were true,” Shinso remarks. “Perhaps you’re not such a pompous ass after all.”

Bakugou bites his tongue. He’d only lost control of his body when he’d talked to that bastard.

“You’re smart, too,” Shinso says. “I sincerely hope your intelligence surpasses your stubbornness.”

Bakugou sends one last blast - the explosion providing enough smoke to cover his path into the swamp. He pauses every so often, just to make sure no one’s following him. But he doesn’t hear any human footsteps, or spot any torches, or smell any smoke. Well, except for the smoke of the dragon curled around his neck, little grey puffs escaping her nostrils as she naps. She stays asleep the whole walk home.

Tonight, Bakugou doesn’t bring her to the couch. Instead, he brings Red to his own bed. He’ll keep her safe, just in case anyone from Class Bitchass dared to follow his trail.

“Hey, Red. You made sparks today…just like me.” Bakugou smiles into his pillow. “You’re gonna be a great dragon.”

Red curls into his side, purring loudly enough for him to hear over the crickets. Gently enough to lull him to sleep. But Bakugou doesn’t sleep. He just stares at the bedroom door, listening for footsteps. He just breathes in and out, checking for smoke. He just waits for their torches to burn his whole world down.


	2. Man, it’s good to be free

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bakugou’s just trying to find some dinner, when a red haired idiot and three Duloc knights bring their fight into HIS swamp.

After his run-in with Class B, Bakugou barely slept a wink. Now, he’s paying the price for his insomnia. He prowls through the swamp, hunting for dinner. But his eyes are heavy from lack of sleep, making it difficult to search for tracks in the dirt or birds in the trees.

Of course, bringing a dragon doesn’t help his chances at a meal. Bakugou normally leaves Red at home while he hunts. After what happened last night, he won’t let her out of his sight, even if Red ends up scaring away his dinner. He can’t even catch a lousy chipmunk, thanks to the twigs cracking under her stomping feet. At her age, she’s still learning the art of stealth. Then again, she had snuck up on Class Bitchass without anyone noticing - Bakugou included. Someday, she’ll make an excellent hunter, even if she spends her time chasing butterflies.

The butterflies aren’t the only ones being chased. Bakugou catches the clank of heavy metal. Only the knights’ armor makes such an obnoxious sound. Bakugou whistles, calling Red back. Per usual, Red scurries over at Bakugo’s signal. She mounts his shoulders, riding piggyback as Bakugou climbs the nearest tree. Bakugou perches on a branch, surveying the scene. Red slides off his back and perches beside him. From this vantage point, they wait for the incoming knights.

Soon enough, Bakugou spots them - three knights ganking one guy, corralling him to the very tree that Bakugou’s perched on. The idiot looks to be in awful shape. His shirt’s torn to shreds. His hair’s a mess. Spiked up. Bright red. Worst of all, he’s waving to the knights - y’know, the ones about to slice him to shreds. Bakugou blinks twice, making sure he’s seeing it right.

Sure enough, the moron’s waving hello, smiling as he says, “Hey guys! I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”

One knight steps forward - the leader, judging by the silver shine of her armor. The other two knights wear dull grey helms, rusted by time. These knights do not speak. Only their leader unrolls a scroll - the same kind of scroll that knights use whenever they threaten to evict Bakugou from the swamp. The sight of it makes his jaw clench so hard that it hurts.

“By the order of Lord Toga,” the knight declares, “I, Knight Uraraka, am authorized to place you under arrest and transport you to a designated resettlement facility. Come peacefully, monster. Me and my men will bring you no harm.”

“I’m not a monster!” the fugitive says, somehow sounding stern and cheery at the same time. “I’m human, like you!”

Uraraka raises her greatsword toward the sun. Bakugou stares at the weapon, his jaw gone slack at the marvel of such a blade. The sword’s shadow stretches to the base of the tree, the sheer size of the thing casting the stranger in its shadow. The sword’s gotta weigh as much as she does, if not more - and yet, she lifts her weapon without breaking a sweat. Strangest of all, the greatsword emits a pink glow. How can any knight wield such a heavy blade? Is the sword infused by another’s quirk? Or is she just that strong?

“Knights of Duloc!” Uraraka shouts. “Assume position!”

Bakugou doesn’t think. He just moves on his own, jumping out of the tree and landing between the stranger and the knights.

“Halt!” Uraraka commands.

Bakugo doesn’t make his move quite yet. Not with the red haired idiot standing right behind him, close enough to get burned by the blast.

“What are you waiting for, shitty hair?” Bakugou shouts. “Get the hell outta here!”

“My name’s not shitty hair! It’s Kirishima!” The stranger - or rather, Kirishima - slams his fists together, creating a _clang_ like sword against sword. “Now that you’re here, we can totally take these guys on.”

Bakugou holds back a smile, keeping his tone stern as he warns, “Just don’t get in my way.”

“Knights of Duloc!” the knight shouts again, leading the charge with her men flanked behind her. “Assume position!”

When the knights charge in, Bakugou goes flying. He takes out the man on the left, sending a blast straight into his shoulder. When the spear slips out of his hand, Bakugou grabs it as planned. He sends it up into the air, destroying the weapon in a single blast.

Kirishima takes out the man on the right, hitting the knight with such force that he dents the metal plate. Rather than destroying the spear, Kirishima holds it as his own, aiming the pointed tip at the final knight.

At the dragon.

Bakugou’s heart pounds in his chest, his voice raw and scratched. “Give her _back!_ ”

“Oh, I will,” Uraraka says, calm and collected, even as she holds her blade to Red’s neck. “But first, you must cooperate. I understand that you and Lord Toga are on good terms thanks to your voluntary upkeep of the swamp. You wouldn’t disgrace her good will on account of a lowborn criminal…would you?”

Bakugou swallows a lump in this throat, fighting back tears as he demands, “Give. Her. Back.”

She raises an eyebrow. “My my. Who would’ve guessed that you, of all monsters, would grow attached to a _dragon?_ Considering your history with the dragons, I’d _never_ …”

Red screeches, unleashing a flurry of sparks.

The knight loses her grip.

Bakugou charges in, catching Red in one arm. With his other arm, he shields the dragon from the inevitable blade.

But the blade never strikes. Instead, it strikes Kirishima’s arm, clattering to the ground as if it never met skin. With only a few inches of space between them, Bakugou sees Kirishima’s skin harden into something jagged, something sharp enough to tear right through the back of his shirt. His fingers turn into blades. Even his voice changes into a deep throated rumble. “If you want them, you have to go through _me_ …”

“ _Hello?_ ” a voice croaks out. “I don’t...I don’t have much longer. The light...don’t go toward the _light_...oh wait, that’s just the sun...can’t you see the sun, Sero? It’s so _bright_.”

“Uraraka?” Sero calls out. “Can you bring Kaminari to Recovery Girl? He’s hit his head again.”

Uraraka sheathes her sword. “Perhaps another time, we’ll finish this fight. For now, I have other imbeciles to attend to.”

And with that, the knight helps her fallen men, hoisting one on each shoulder as they walk back through the swamp.

As soon as the knights are out of sight, Kirishima un-hardens his skin. He whips around, resting his hands on Bakugou’s shoulders. Soft. Warm. Not at all dangerous like before. “Hey man, are you alright?”

“I’m fucking fine!” Bakugou holds Red close, running his hand over her trembling spine. He keeps his glare set on Kirishima as he shouts, “Just fuck off, won’t ya?!”

Kirishima tightens his grip on Bakugou’s shoulders. “Can I say something to you?”

Bakugou doesn’t reply. He just glares at the hand on his shoulder. Who the hell does this punk think he is?

“Listen,” Kirishima says, “you were really really something back there. _Incredible!_ Those guards had me cornered. Then you showed up and BAM!” He smiles wide and adds, “Man, it’s good to be free.”

Bakugou steps forward. If he can’t scare him off with a glare, maybe getting in his space will make him leave. No one wants to stand this close to a living breathing explosion. Then again, maybe the guy really is an idiot. After all, he’s just staring slack-jawed at the monster standing way too close. Bakugou’s close enough to smell the sweat dripping down Kirishima’s neck. He must’ve run a long way. He must’ve hit his head if he’s not running now. He must’ve forgotten what Bakugou could do.

Bakugou holds Red in one arm, cradling her like an infant. With his free hand, he lets the sparks fly, hoping to jog Kirishima’s memory. “Why don’t you go celebrate your freedom with your own friends?”

“I’m celebrating with you!" Kirishima says. "We’re friends, right?”

“ _Friends?_ ” Bakugou mocks, saying the word with such spite that he spits in Kirishima’s face. “Take a look at me! What am I?”

“Uh…” Kirishima has the nerve to smirk. “Really manly?”

“ _No!_ I’m a monster!” Bakugou holds his crackling hand under Kirishima’s grin. Not close enough to hurt him. Just close enough to feel the heat as he says, “Y’know, grab your torch and pitchforks! Doesn’t that _bother_ you?”

Kirishima shakes his head. “Nope!”

The sparks go out. “Really?”

Kirishima nods. “Really really!”

Bakugou steps back. “ _Oh_.”

“Man, I like you.” Kirishima’s smile softens, his voice warm as he asks, “What’s your name?”

“Uh…Bakugou.”

“You know what I like about you, Bakugou? You’ve got that kinda _I don’t care what nobody thinks of me_ thing. I like that. I respect that.” Kirishima offers a thumbs-up. “You alright.”

Only then does Bakugou notice the blood dripping from Kirishima’s fist. “What the hell happened to your hand?!”

“I, uh, blocked the blade.” Kirishima holds his other hand over the cut, sheepish as he says, “But I, um…I didn’t harden in time.”

Bakugou grabs Kirishima’s hand, inspecting the cut. It’ll heal in time, but it’s deep. Prone to infection.

“Uh, bro?” Kirishima asks. “What are you doing?”

“We’ve gotta wrap this up. No sense in saving your sorry ass if you’re just gonna die from goddamn germs.” Bakugou lets go, waving Kirishima onward. “C'mon, shitty hair.”

Kirishima catches up, beaming as he rests his unbloody hand on Bakugou’s shoulder. “My name’s not shitty hair! It’s Kirishima!”

Bakugou bristles at the contact. Nonetheless, he doesn’t push the hand away. He’s used to a cold blooded dragon wrapped around his shoulders. A warm hand is something entirely different. Especially when it’s accompanied by a sharp-toothed smile. Why the hell are his teeth so pointy? And why does that smile do weird things to Bakugou’s gut?

“What the fuck are you smiling about?” Bakugou demands.

Kirishima’s smile wavers. “Um…I’m not sure.”

Bakugou cracks a smile at that. “You’re so fucking weird.”

Kirishima goes slack jawed again, then smiles wider than ever before.

Bakugou looks away, refusing to let that smile do anything else weird to his gut. Maybe Kirishima’s quirk is more than hardening. Just like Bakugou’s skin secretes nitroglycerin, maybe Kirishima’s hand secretes a slow acting poison - one that makes his head swim and his body feel all floaty. And yet, Bakugou doesn’t push away the hand still resting on his shoulder. He doesn’t try to make Kirishima leave again. Truth be told, he doesn’t want him to go. Rather than march through the woods, he takes his time on their walk, if only so he can have just a few more minutes.

Not that it matters. After the wound is fixed up, he’ll be gone. Just like everyone else who wanders into the swamp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up, Kirishima and Bakugou finally get some peace and quiet. How long will the peace last before trouble comes knocking at their door?

**Author's Note:**

> Next chapter preview: "By the order of Lord Toga, I am authorized to place you under arrest and transport you to a designated resettlement facility."


End file.
